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Rick Kent

CEO & Founder | CFP®, AEP®, RFC® | Merit Financial Advisors

Rick is an entrepreneur and visionary leader who founded Merit on a servant-leadership philosophy and a commitment to helping individuals reach their financial goals while supporting fellow advisors and entrepreneurs in meeting their professional goals. He has been widely recognized for his contributions to the industry, including being ranked among the Forbes Top 10 Best-in-State Wealth Advisors List in Georgia for 2 consecutive years. Rick has a clear vision for Merit’s growth, designing a program that allows advisors to align with Merit in a number of ways. Rick is well versed in the industry and is striving to change it for the better.

Rick delivers high-energy presentations that challenge audiences to leverage their focus and pay attention to what matters most at work and in life. Audiences appreciate his practical strategies they can apply directly to their business model. Rick offers his insight to business owners, advisors, and executives. Having been a key player in multiple mergers and acquisitions over the past four years, Rick is well versed in the industry and is striving to change it for the better.

Earning many awards for his financial services capabilities, his team, and his vision have further highlighted Rick’s journey towards excellence. This perspective motivated him to coach, develop, inspire, and mentor fellow advisors as they strive to keep up with the ever-changing financial services industry. He brings this same dedication to his work with business leaders to empower their teams and achieve greater success. Being a successful entrepreneur, Rick started multiple companies making him a diverse leader willing to share his recipes for success with others. Best Places to Work for Financial Advisors 2018, 2019, 2020, & 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024. Recognized firms were required to be a registered investment advisor (RIA) that has been in business at least one year and having a minimum of 15 full-time/part-time employees. The assessment consisted of a questionnaire on benefits and policies completed by human resources staff along with an engagement & satisfaction survey completed by a minimum of 40% of staff. 50 firms were selected for this award from an undisclosed list of submissions. There was no charge to be included in this award listing.

Barron’s 2023 Top 100 Private Wealth Management Teams, the teams are ranked on a variety of factors, including their size and shape, their regulatory records and credentials of their members, and the resources they have at their disposal to serve their client bases. The rankings are meant as a starting point for clients looking for an advisor—a first-pass vetting that can help investors narrow a search. Every advisor will have his or her own approach to investing, financial planning, and other services. InvestmentNews RIA Firm of the Year 2024 - The InvestmentNews Awards team will conduct research and draw on knowledge and information gained through InvestmentNews to support and supplement nominations received.

Barron’s 2023 Top RIA Firms, Data is verified with the advisors’ firms and with regulatory databases in three major categories of calculations: Assets, revenue, and quality of practice. Every advisor will have his or her own approach to investing, financial planning, and other services.

The Forbes Best-in-State Wealth Advisor 2023 ranking, developed by SHOOK Research, is based on in-person and telephone due diligence meetings and a ranking algorithm that includes: client retention, industry experience, review of compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, including: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Portfolio performance is not a criterion due to varying client objectives and lack of audited data. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK Research receives a fee in exchange for rankings.

2017, 2018, 2020 Financial Times 300 Top Registered Investment Advisers evaluates SEC registered investment advisers that reported at least $300 million in assets under management and were selected based on the following criteria: adviser AUM, asset growth, the company’s age, industry certifications of key employees, SEC compliance record and online accessibility.

RIA Intel’s 2022 RIA of the Year - More Than $1 Billion AUM award, was based on the quantitative as well as qualitative criteria: an impressive RIA that has grown beyond a practice and into a complex business for the betterment of clients and its employees.

The Forbes ranking of America’s Top RIA Firms 2022, 2023 developed by SHOOK Research, is based on an algorithm of qualitative criteria, mostly gained through telephone, virtual and in-person due diligence interviews, and quantitative data. The algorithm weighs factors like revenue trends, assets under management, compliance records, industry experience and those that encompass best practices and approach to working with clients. Portfolio performance is not a criterion due to varying client objectives and lack of audited data. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK receive a fee in exchange for rankings.